Robert Plant on Reluctance for Led Zeppelin Reunion: ‘I’d Be a Whore and I’m Never Going to Be That’

In the times since John Bonham's death, reunions of Led Zeppelin have been few and far between, with the last being a one-off show in 2007 that turned into their Celebration Day live release. While there has been fan interest in more from the surviving trio, Robert Plant has remained firmly on the side of not reuniting, often shooting down the talk. In a new interview with Esquire, Plant offered an extensive explanation as to why he's been reluctant to engage in more music or shows with Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones.

"All those projects, well, they’re going to do somebody some good somewhere, and that's good, but you don’t even have to talk to me if all you want to know about is Led Zeppelin," explained Plant. "Thirty-eight years ago, John Bonham passed away, that's all I know. That's it. That's the story. You know, Led Zeppelin was an amazing, prolific fun factory for a period of time, but it was three amazing musicians and a singer living in the times. Those times. That's not going to stop me doing what I’m doing now. So that's a headline, or not a headline. It doesn't matter to me."

He went on to add, "If I didn't [move forward], I'd be a whore, and I'm never going to be that. I'm only a singer, and therefore I can get bored really quickly. And if I get bored really quickly, what am I doing nearly 70 years old being bored? No chance. So I move on all the time."

Plant continues, "The fact of that is, in the last 10 or 15 years, my work has been really well received. And it's very nice to see, and it makes me feel a bit that I’m in the right place, at least for some people, even if other people just don't know about it. I mean, it is basically about opening the blinds. Look, how many thousands of people are there in the airports that I travel through, who are amazed that they see me, yet have no idea of what I'm doing? Not a fucking clue. That's how it goes, and I’m fine with that, especially since the emergency departments of the geriatric wards are filled with people like me, still hanging on, because there was something else before."

The singer seems content with things as they are, enjoying what he's doing in the moment. He adds, "For me, my time has got to be filled with joy and endeavor and humor and power and absolute self-satisfaction. That’s not with Led Zeppelin. That’s doing what I’m doing right now, with this band, on this tour ... But as for what I’ll be doing in five years time, I haven't got the answer. I haven't got a clue."

While new music and a tour with Zeppelin is not on Plant's "to-do" list, he did join the other surviving members of the band to work on a book that will be released this year for Zeppelin's 50th Anniversary. Jimmy Page has also been at work on a number of Zeppelin-related releases for the landmark anniversary. The live album How the West Was Won has been remastered for release on March 23 and the band will issue their first Record Store Day vinyl featuring previously unreleased mixes of "Rock and Roll" and "Friends" on April 21. Drummer Jason Bonham, John's son, also revealed that he's changed the name of his Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience to Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Evening out of deference to the band's desire to do something with the "Led Zeppelin Experience" moniker.

Plant, meanwhile, has continued working with his band the Sensational Space Shifters. They released the well-received Carry Fire album last fall and are hitting the touring trail this spring and summer. See dates here.

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